NEED HELP! What do I do?

[Cowgirl71]

Okay, I put 22 chicken eggs into lockdown on the 19th. They started hatching early morning of the 22nd (they were due the evening of the 22nd).

At noon of the 22nd, one (of many) pipped. It was a very bloody pip (I've never seen this before

). By that evening the pip was the size of a quarter, and still very bloody. Now, the next day in the afternoon, the chick has made no progress. I can still see his beak moving as he breaths through the hole, but he seems very weak (much weaker than yesterday). Here's my question: Do I just leave him, to probably die? Or do I try and assist him and indanger all the other unhatched eggs by opening the incubator, making the temperature and humidity plumet. I've never had a very good longterm success rate with chicks I've helped to hatch. If the pip was/is bloody, does that mean he's a gonner regardless of what I do? Please help!

 

[mrslb333]

I'd whip it out of the incubator quickly and help it, I know every one has different opinions on this one but for me I'd rather try and fail than not and regret it. If you gently peel the shell off and moisten the thick white membrane it often slides of with ease then the one with all the veins, I try to roll it back rather than tear it. I've found that chicks that are cheeping often survive the quiet ones rarely do. But where there's life there's hope.
Ultimately do what you feel is best.

 

[Cowgirl71]

UPDATE: After thinking about it, I finally decided to help him a little, but not all the way. My Dad has said many times about how if you help a caterpillar out of it's cocoon it will die. It needs to struggle to get out to live. So I went ahead and helped a little of the way. I cracked the shell all the way around, and made his hole a little bit bigger. To let him get plenty of oxygen I ripped away a couple tiny pieces of membrane and cleared some strands of his down away from his nostrils. He acted more vigorous after I cleared away around his nostrils, even cheaping a couple times (I haven't heard him cheap all day). We'll see. I hope he hatches.

Also, there was some dried up blood around the hole, but no blood anywhere else! The membrane didn't look very healthy though. Kinda yellowish brownish, even underneath the shell (rather than white like I've seen in the past). What could it be?

BTW, here's something I've finally learned about LG incubators. If you need to assist a chick, you can quickly go in and out without losing very much heat or humidity by popping out one of the windows and sliding it half-way back, just enough to slip your hand in. In the past I've tilted the lid to one side, and that didn't work well at all. Just thought I'd share.

 

[Cowgirl71]

NEW UPDATE: After watching him pushing for several minutes, and hearing him squeal when another chick pecked him, I took him back out and put a light on him and let him hatch in my hand.

I then put him down and let him flop around a little bit until the "stuff" fell off his navel (because it's a pecking magnet). I then put him back into the incubator. Luckily, two other chicks had hatched while he was hatching and so the older chicks divide their attention between three newborn chicks. He does seem weeker and not as active as the other chicks, but I'm hoping he'll be okay.

 

[nicoletm24]

I always help if I think they need me. to me, it all depends on how much the chicks mean to you. I know some are totally against it...and that doesn't mean they don't care, but it's JMO that I see one that seems to be in trouble, I'm going to give him a chance!

 

[Cowgirl71]

ANOTHER UPDATE: I checked him this morning and he's still alive! He seems to be getting stronger to! Yesterday I picked him out from the others by the fact that he was the one just laying in the corner. This morning that way didn't work! This time I had to use "the black chick with the single comb."

He's just about as active as the others his age! He's not out of the woods yet by any means, but it's looking good so far!

Oh, another chick hatched overnight! So that's 16 down, 6 to go. But the 6 aren't showing any activity. I think the hatch is done.

But I'll leave the unhatched eggs in the incubator for another couple days, just in case...

Thanks for your input.

I probably would of otherwise just left him...